Black Caiman

Melanosuchusniger: Long-term mark-recapture field study

1. Conduct a detailed ecological study of the Black Caiman.

2. Recommend protocols to resolve human/caiman conflicts.

3. Develop a cadre of indigenous naturalists to provide the basis for the continued study of crocodilian species, to educate local people on conservation and management issues, and to assist in the implementation of sound conservation practices.

4. Enhance our knowledge of the natural history and biology of black caiman through scientific publications and other media.

Adam Rosenblatt, PhD is an ecologist and teacher interested in the roles of large predators in ecosystems, how predators co-exist with humans, and the effects of climate change on wildlife. He is currently a research fellow at the Yale Climate and Energy Institute in New Haven, CT and has been collaborating with the black caiman research project at Caiman House Field Station since 2011. Dr. Rosenblatt has worked on wildlife research projects all over the globe, including projects in Guyana, Belize, New Zealand, Australia, Hawaii, Florida, Ohio, and New England.

Yellow-spotted Amazon River Turtle

Podocnemis unifilis: Community Monitoring and Head-start

This is an on-going village project founded 2011 in partnership with Lesley University graduate and Caiman House Intern Jeff Slocum.

Goal: To reduce the annual losses of adults, hatchlings and nests; to found a community-based management strategy; to build on strong local interest in and enthusiasm for turtle conservation in Guyana.

Jaguar

(Panthera onca) Population Survey

To establish baseline population densities of jaguar and their prey in the Kanuku Mountains via camera-trapping techniques and capture-recapture analyses; to build capacity for community-based monitoring; to support identification of a critical corridor linking regional jaguar populations.

Matt Hallett, Principal Investigator

Matt Hallett earned his PhD in the Department of Wildlife Ecology and Conservation at the University of Florida, where his research focuses on participatory monitoring of large mammals in southwestern Guyana. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Biology from the College of Charleston and Master's in Zoology and Environmental Science from Miami University. Matt continues to work in Guyana estimating jaguar populations in one of Guyana's newest protected areas, assisting communities with wildlife management planning, leading the Rupununi Wildlife Research Unit, managing biodiversity assessments, facilitating field courses for Miami University and supporting community-based conservation and research at Caiman House Research Station. Matt got his start in the zoo and aquarium industry, working at North Carolina Zoo, South Carolina Aquarium and the John G. Shedd Aquarium, gaining field experiences in Kenya, the Great Lakes, South Africa, the Bahamas and Malaysian Borneo during stops in between.

Makushi Ethnobotany Project

Since June 2012, Lewis Daly earned his PhD and is a teaching Fellow in Social Anthropology at the University of London. He has been conducting anthropological research into indigenous plant knowledge in Yupukari. Working in collaboration with villagers and local experts, Lewis has been recording data relating to varietal diversity of crops, the cultivation and processing of cassava, local fermentation technologies, medicinal plants, and the use of plant charms in shamanic ritual. Research outputs include a doctoral thesis, a number of academic papers and journalistic articles, linguistic materials, ecological lists, and - in the future - a published monograph on Makushi ecological knowledge. More generally, the project aims to promote education and the preservation of local ecological knowledge in the North Rupununi region.